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Franz Ferdinand: Always Ascending

It may have come to your attention that the mighty Franz Ferdinand are poised to return with a new line-up.
The band’s latest configuration features Julian Corrie, aka synth pop maestro Miaoux Miaoux, on keyboards and vocals and Dino Bardot, once of glam indie pop trio 1990s, on guitar.
They also have a brand spanking new album, Always Ascending, out on 9 February.

Photo by David Edwards

But we have also been tickled to note that Franz have been touring for the past few months with a striking new backdrop which pays homage to the legendary Barrowland. This fan-shot footage illustrates it well.

The band have already drawn on Barrowland iconography, holding a photoshoot for third album, Tonight:Franz Ferdinand, in front of the venue, so it wasn’t too much of a stretch to come up with the idea when they needed fresh visuals.

Something exciting is about to happen

According to bassist Bob Hardy, all they had to do to gain Barrowland’s blessing was to ask nicely. “We emailed them to ask if they’d mind and they said it was fine,” he says. “On the occasions when we have a full screen behind us and it’s lit, it’s amazing. I find myself turning round and watching. It looks just like the sign and flashes just like the sign does.”

“I’ve got so many good memories of going there to gigs,” says frontman Alex Kapranos. “When you see that sign flashing, you think something exciting is about to happen. It’s like going to the carnival, seeing those lights in the distance.

It’s good to go back to Glasgow

“It does feel like you’re taking a little bit of Glasgow with you. It’s quite a good representative tool, because having Julian and Dino join the band brought the band back into Glasgow. It was a conscious decision. When we were first looking for new members, there was so-and-so in New York and there’s that guy in LA or whatsisname over in Australia. We’re a band that plays all over the world and we could have asked someone from anywhere to join but it’s good to go back to Glasgow.”

Hometown gig

Ironically, the band’s first opportunity to show it off in their hometown will be when they play a sold out homecoming gig at…O2 Academy in a few weeks.

Franz Ferdinand play O2 Academy, Glasgow on 17 Feb. Always Ascending is released by Domino on 9 Feb